Manchester United Financial Reflect No Champions League Play

byDavidonFebruary 12, 2015

Manchester United released their financial resulted for the second quarter of their financial year and the effects of not qualifying for the Champions League is apparent.

United saw broadcasting revenue drop from £46.9m for the same period last term to £28.4m, a fall of 39.4% while matchday revenue dipped from £33.7m to £30.9m. United Executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward put that down to a lack of Champions League football at Old Trafford after last season’s seventh-placed finish

Juts as worrying was the fact gat United’s debt rose by almost £24m in the space of three months, up from £356.6m to £380.5m. United claim that this is down to the strength of the US dollar.

Interestingly, despite all this big name signings this summer, United’s staff costs actually went down, supporting their claim three months ago that their wage bill will be lower after several big earners left the club and because they are not paying bonuses for involvement in Champions League football.

The future is still bright for the club off the pitch as the new Premier League rights deal will be worth £5.1 billion over three years from 2016 for live broadcasts in the United Kingdom alone.

“The recently announced Premier League broadcasting rights package for 2016-19, representing an increase just over 70 percent, once again demonstrates that we are part of the top football league in the world” said Woodward.

“Notwithstanding no European football this season, our revenues remain strong and demonstrate the underlying strength of our business model, with commercial revenues up year over year. On the pitch, the team is well-positioned to challenge for a top-four finish in the Premier League.”

United announced record revenues of 433.2 million pounds for the last financial year and expect that to drop to between 385 and 395 million for the current year.